Like any soul-food restaurant worth its weight in red beans and
rice, Soul Folks Cafe feels more like someone's living room
than someone's place of business. The Los Angeles eatery just
won't let you rush--not through its warehouse-style restaurant
filled with eclectic artwork and comfy furniture; not through
owner/chef Yealang Smith's menu, with selections such as
"James Brown's 'Hit Me Two Times' Fried
Chicken;" and certainly not through a meal.

Soul Folks is one of a number of gourmet soul-food
establishments cropping up nationwide. It's a trend that makes
sense for anyone who grew up on cornbread, fried chicken, seafood
gumbo, catfish, and macaroni and cheese--and who's now looking
for the equivalent in a gourmet restaurant. "Anyone born in
America has eaten soul food at some point," explains Smith,
39, who started Soul Folks in 1996, moved into her
10,000-square-foot location in March 2004, and now averages up to
$30,000 monthly in sales. "The high-end chefs are now taking
soul food and translating it into their own creations."

New York City international investment and commercial real
estate consultant Andrew A. Pittel has seen evidence of the trend in
Harlem, where upscale businesses are helping to revitalize formerly
impoverished neighborhoods. "I don't know that it's a
trend--it's a way of life," says Pittel, noting the
success of longtime Harlem soul-food icon Sylvia's.
"Families are moving into Harlem and enjoying [it]."

The same is true in other cities, such as Detroit, says Frank
Taylor, the 39-year-old founder and owner of Magnolia, an upscale
soul-food restaurant in downtown Detroit. Launched in July 2004,
Magnolia is expected to gross $2.5 million annually. "It's
comfort food," says Taylor, also proprietor of nearby Sweet
Georgia Brown restaurant and Seldom Blues Jazz Restaurant and Supper Club.
"It reminds you of your mom's or your grandmother's
cooking."

Undoubtedly, eating soul food hearkens back to days when a meal
meant not only nourishment, but also camaraderie, conversation and
a collective "mmm." "The world is overworked. [My
restaurant] should be a refuge for the spirit," says Smith,
whose clientele has included comedian Martin Lawrence, actors Danny
Glover and Sharon Stone, and hip-hop band Outkast, for whom she
threw a Grammy soiree. "I want customers to experience
bliss."